Construction of 10.5 km of tunnelled sewer is planned through the Belfast Catchment Area. The GBP100 million seven-year plan is designed to modernise Belfast's ageing sewerage system. It aims to improve the current sewerage system and reduce the pollutant load on the River Lagan and its tributaries by 85%. The exact route of the 4 m-diameter tunnel through the city centre is still to be finalised, and will be influenced by the geology, availability of sites for tunnel shafts and other logistical constraints. It will snake its way through the city centre from Glenmachan Street near the M1 to a pumping station at Belfast Wastewater Treatment Works in Duncrue Street near the M2. Also included is 19 km of new sewers, 26 stormwater tanks and the repair of 800 sewers.In July 2003, a consortium of Atkins and Amec was awarded the commission to provide project management and construction services for this project. The entire project will take almost seven years to complete and work will start before this summer, with tunnelling work planned to start 18 months later. Visit www.atkinsglobal.com and www.amec.com 09/04.Prior information notice for design and construction of civil, mechanical and electrical/instrumentation works including approximately 10.4 km of tunnelled sewers with diameters ranging from 1.2 to 4 m within the Belfast urban area. Start of work scheduled for January 2006. Visit http://ted.publications.eu.int/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=111862-2004, OJ S 131, or contact Department for regional development of Northern Ireland, Belfast, fax +44 2890354822. E-mail devadmin@waterni.gov.uk 30/04.Restricted procedure, deadline 6th October, 2004 for design and construction of civil, mechanical, electrical/instrumentation works, including approximately 9.5 km of tunnelled sewers with diameters ranging from 1.5 m to 4 m, access shafts, a terminal pumping station shaft, a storm screening facility, an outfall, and a new storm tank. Visit http://ted.publications.eu.int/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=142161-2004, OJ S 164, or contact Department for Regional Development for Northern Ireland, Belfast, fax +442890354822. E-mail malcom.brassey@atkinsglobal.com 36/04.Northern Ireland Water Service has awarded the stormwater management works contract, a three-year, GBP91.8 million scheme to upgrade Belfast's sewerage system, to Morgan Est and Farrans Construction. The scope of the contract includes the design, construction, testing and commissioning of 3.8 km 4 m ID tunnel (segmental) to be constructed using an EPB Lovat TBM in one drive; 3.8 km 2.4 m ID tunnel (segmental) to be constructed using an EPB Lovat TBM in several drives (main drive of 2.6 km, plus four connecting tunnels ranging in length from 160 m to 470 m); 1.3 km 1.95 m ID tunnel (pipejack) to be constructed using an EPB Lovat TBM (six drives), 170 m to 290 m in length; and 0.53 km 1.5 m ID tunnel (pipejack) to be constructed using either EPB or slurry TBM (two drives). Visit www.lovat.comThe contract, under the city centre to the Duncrue wastewater treatment works, also involves the construction of 20 segmental shafts for tunnel/sewer access varying in size from 6 m to 17.5 m up to 30 m deep, six bored shafts for side entry access to sewer, 1.6 m ID 12 to 30 m to invert level; a pumping station shaft, 37 m ID 36 m deep (the proposed construction technique is diaphragm wall down to rockhead, excavation and SCL lining in sandstone); a 16 cu m/sec pumping station housed inside a 40 m-diameter underground structure; a 18 cu m/sec stormwater screens facility (drum type); a 18 cu m/sec outfall diffuser structure; two stormwater tanks providing 6,000 cu m storage capacity; and ten connections to ex overflow structures. Visit www.morganest.com, www.farrans.com and www.waterni.gov.ukThe ground conditions consist of drift deposits (sleech, alluvial clay and glacial till) overlying Sherwood sandstone. Sub vertical dyke intrusions of dolerite exist within the sandstone. Majority of tunnelling work will be carried out within the glacial till, with some lengths of the 4 m and 2.4 m tunnels encountering sandstone.The modernisation of the city's sewerage system, which supports 250,000 people in the greater Belfast area, will result in improvements to both the water quality of the River Lagan and other watercourses. Flooding within Belfast city will also be reduced. Morgan Est is due to start work on the project this month and will take three years to complete. The engineer and planning supervisor is Atkins. The designer for the JV is Underground Professional Services and WDR & RT Taggart. Visit www.atkins.com and www.wdr-rt-taggart.com 37/06.